Breakers
by Songbird of the End
Summary: Pre-Tamers. AR. With the threat of the Reaper returning, preparations need to be made.
1. Chapter 1

Alright, the plan is that this will be updated every two weeks, but with any luck it'll be more often than that. And if not, you all have permission to grab a baseball bat and go to town on me. But don't hit too hard, though, 'cuz I still have to be able to type out chapters.

Okay? Okay.

This is the most coherent dream I've ever had in novel form with tons more additions and modifications. This _will_ center around OCs, but be glad they're legitimate characters and not a blatant author insert. Canon characters will show up a few times but other than that...

**Warning! Extremely twisted version of Digimon ahead! If you value your sanity, do not be ashamed to back out now.**

...Whusses.

* * *

In a world where ours is a goal only the strong can reach, far below the lowest level few dare to brave, was the Core. And within the Core, a large red crystal hung in a rounded, glass stalactite and shone continuously up and through the layers of the world surrounding it, allowing the strange inhabitants a power our world has only recently conceived of. Beneath it was the softly glowing Center of Being, something that is lost somewhere in the border between dead and alive. And odd creatures resembling furry fish were flying around the gem in a carefree manner.

… Or at least, they were usually carefree.

Now they were frightened. They chattered nervously with each other, and some were even biting their nonexistent nails or wringing their hands. Their flight, usually playful and graceful, was now quick and only used to get them from Point A to Point B. Their talk revolved around one subject.

The Reaper is returning.

Something shifted. But, instead, of something moving, all motion stopped. The flyers seemed to listen to something, before turning as one to face the red suspended just out of the yellow glow's reach. One approached it, paying no mind to the transparent material it went through, and held out its wing-like hands expectantly. A small, glowing ball appeared, and the flyer immediately turned around and flew towards the surface. All the others approached the gem as one and started wrapping their power around it. A tendril from the yellow Center reached towards the crystal to aid them.

Meanwhile, the lone flyer broke the surface of the lowest level. It quickly scanned the sky and soon found what looked like a pink moon. Holding its precious message, it flew as fast as it dared to. When it reached the next level, it curled protectively around the orb, and once it broke through the ground, it returned to its usual position for the fastest flight possible.

After reaching the highest level, a barren desert, it looked once more to the satellite which no longer looked like a moon. Several layers of coding and grids partially hid the pixilated surface from view, but it was easy to make out if someone was familiar with geography.

It was Earth. And someone was about to receive a special message.

AGTCTCAGTCAGATCCAGAGCTGA

TCAGAGTCAGTCTAGGTCTCGACT

Fingers flew across the keyboard, and the rapid tak-tak-tak of typing filled the small apartment. Bloodshot eyes stared at the computer screen as lines upon lines of data materialized on it, expertly watching for any errors that would screw up the complex program. The figure behind the computer blindly reached for the mug of long cold coffee and swallowed the bitter fluid without a second thought.

The man leaned back in his chair and stretched, waiting for the caffeine to kick in. He glanced over to the window and wasn't completely surprised to see the sun peaking above the horizon.

His computer beeped as if angry to be ignored, but it was really just one new email. The man minimized the window containing the code he slaved all night over and _still_ wasn't done with and brought up his inbox. There was no subject, and the man frowned when he didn't recognize the sender.

His cursor moved over the delete button, but he refrained from clicking when a certain type of virus, activated by deleting the email it was attached to, surfaced in his mind. He quickly activated the virus scan and directed it towards the new email. After it came up negative, he decided it was safe to get rid of it. Before he could do anything, though, it opened itself to show a mess of two numbers. He quickly recognized it and couldn't stop the small gasp that came out of his mouth followed by the usual question. "What the…?"

It was a complex algorithm, one he never thought he'd see again despite making it. The last he saw it, he was rushing to add it to a computer project that got shut down a few minutes later. But below the familiar sequence of ones and zeros was another sequence set up in an odd format. The techie that the man was, he almost subconsciously translated the binary code into letters then words that average people could read.

WE NEED YOUR HELP. DO YOU ACCEPT?

-YES

-NO

He clicked 'yes' without hesitation. Code instantly filled up the screen and kept filling page after page of binary code. The man read on, all thoughts of the other code waiting patiently for its finishing touches gone.

And a few feet away, in the doorway of the apartment, a familiar yellow jacket hung innocently.


	2. Chapter 2

Gaaaaaaah sorry, I thought the first was on a Wednesday and oops. My world's just kinda in crazy go-go-go-don't-stop mode, and the story was banking on Tamers never actually telling us when everything takes place but the Japanese version _has_ dates and now everything is just kinda crashing together and turning into a huge ball of flame--

But you all don't want to hear about my problems, right? You just want to read a story--who the hell am I kidding, **no one's even reading this!** (-takes deep breath-) I will not snark at the readers, I will not snark at the readers, I wil not snark at the readers...

Changed AU to AR in the summery, because Alternate Reality fits more than Alternate Universe. Disclaimer's in profile and will never be mentioned again. (**Edited** due to sheer stupidity on the part of the author.)

* * *

Red mist. That's all there really was. It couldn't be fog seeing as it wasn't chilly. It wasn't hot, so it couldn't be steam. The only feeling someone could get from it was the thrum of energy, making it exciting, suspicious, and otherworldly.

She wasn't tired. Yet, by her own logic, she had been running full kilter for far longer than she should have been able to, and so her chest was heaving and she was moving slower. But she couldn't—wouldn't—stop running.

Someone was chasing her.

She didn't know who or what it was, only it was back there and it wanted her and she did not want _it_ to catch her. It made no sound, but she could somehow feel it behind her getting closer, and with every bound she took it took two, until it was right at her heels. Wanting to at least know who her silent stalker was, she turned her head backwards—

"Shira! You don't want to be late for your first day back!"

—And found herself staring at her dark blue pillow. Her gaze slowly moved about the room—her room—before she released a gulp of air she didn't remember holding. She had to remember to thank her aunt later for that.

Her room had been painted a dark blue that would have to be repainted over if she were to ever move out and contained white furniture. All across the walls and ceiling were various sizes of glow-in-the-dark stars that anyone would love to see at night. Some of them were in the shapes of familiar constellations, such as the big dipper, while others formed more obscure shapes, such as the wolf or dolphin. Her furniture consisted of a bed, a desk, and a bookshelf crammed with books and various little figurines and doodads.

Atsuko Shira jumped out of bed with all the energy a morning person could muster and started to get ready for school. She pulled off her lavender colored pajamas and reached for her usual clothes. Her shirt was a dull swamp green with pink sleeves adorned with a multicolored butterfly along with regular jeans with a sewn rose decal at the bottom. She hopped out of her room while pulling on a white pair of socks and straight into the dining/kitchen area where her breakfast and Aunt were waiting.

Aunt Haruka was an average sized woman in her early forties. She shared her niece's dark brown hair and eyes. While the younger of the two had their hair down to shoulder length, Haruka had hers cut so it curled a little above the nape of her neck. She wore a faded blue suit and a pair of stud earrings, and her usual gentle face wore a frown.

"Honestly, Shira, that's the third morning in a row I've had to wake you up. Now, today you're going to start your homework the moment you get home," she admonished.

A quick 'K' was her answer as Shira downed the milk left in the bowl, placed it hastily in the sink and sped off to her bathroom. Haruka just sighed. "I'm off to work, honey. Have a good day at school."

A string of muffled gibberish that would be impossible to write out followed the older woman out. A few minutes later, Shira bolted out of the apartment with a red and white backpack and wearing regular black shoes.

_That's me, Atsuko Shira. I was ten and continuing what the Americans would call fifth grade. I live in an apartment building with my Aunt Haruka while my parent lives out in the country. Or was it some other city? I, frankly, didn't care._

"Stupid dreams," she grumbled to herself as she approached the elevator, "making me wake up late." She irritably punched the button that brings the elevator to her floor. She looked thoughtful for a minute before speaking again. "Is red fog even natural?"

_Why wasn't I living with them? After Mom died, Dad decided he couldn't live with seeing ghosts of her memory in every place, on every corner of Shinjuku, so he packed everything up and moved away. Aunt Haruka took me in stating I needed a strong feminine influence, and Dad didn't put up a fight._

The elevator sounded its arrival and Shira stepped on, anxious to get going. Once the doors opened, she ran out into the familiar streets. It had been a typical Shinjuku summer: hot, humid, and no rain to be seen for miles. Since it was still morning, it was a little chilly and the perfect temperature for a mad dash to school, but it promised to be a hot one later. She turned a corner and noticed a familiar figure standing underneath an electricity pole.

A girl was standing at the pole with her blonde hair pulled back into a ponytail. She wore grey jeans and a pink T-shirt with the infamous Happy Bunny on it. A slightly faded yellow backpack peeked over her shoulder. Her hazel eyes looked up from glancing at her watch to see Shira blasting towards her. She smiled and waved before calling out. "Shira!"

_This is Smith Nicolette. No, wait, is it Nicolette Smith? Either way, we've been friends for a long time. Don't let her Valley Girl look fool you, she can keep a secret like the best of them. Her parents moved here from America when she was about two, but her English isn't very good. I guess that's what you get for living in another country all your life._

"Hi, Nikki," Shira gasped, trying to catch her breath from the run. She was hunched over with her hands on her knees. Nicolette, or Nikki as her friends called her, stood a little off to the side and frowned.

"Come on, you're supposed to be the morning bird and I'm supposed to be the night owl. So, how come you've been getting up later than usual?"

"Sorry… I stayed up a little too late last night." Shira lied, being careful to talk at her normal pace. She hadn't told Nikki about the weird dreams. I mean, you wouldn't want to worry your best friend over something they can't help, would you?

"Yeah? Well stop. Staying up late's my job," Nikki grinned, completely buying the lie and responding with a quip. Shira grinned back, relieved, before Nikki started talking again. "We better get going, though. Wouldn't want to be late for the first day of school!"

The brunette shook off the brief sense of déjà vu before speed walking beside her friend. They chatted about small things as they strolled down the street, paying just enough attention to their surroundings to make sure they didn't take a wrong turn anywhere. The girls passed a couple of stores, but only took notice of a bakery due to the smell wafting out and quickened their pace.

It was a couple blocks later that Shira, laughing at Nikki's story of the egg in the microwave, happened to glance ahead. She stopped dead in her tracks and stared like a deer trapped in the headlights.

_Oh, did I forget to mention I had a stalker?_

"Shira?"

Said girl snapped out of her stupor and looked to her friend's confused and worried face. She pasted a small smile on her face and forced herself to sound calm. "Hey, Nikki, how about we take a different route?"

The blonde, however, wasn't fooled one bit and was about to protest when Shira furtively looked ahead. He… no, _it_ was looking this way and she could almost see a twisted smile form on its face. Faster than she herself thought possible, Shira grabbed Nikki's wrist and pulled her into a nearby alleyway and heard herself say, "Don't worry, we won't be late!"

_Along with the fact it's like a ghost only I can see?_

Shira full out sprinted through the back alley praying to every god, goddess, and deity she knew that it wouldn't follow her. It had a humanoid shape, but she could tell it wasn't human. It didn't have hands or feet and its arms and legs ended in one long spike. Its body was a light red color, but not pink, and it almost looked like static. It didn't really have any facial features (or hair, for that matter), but it was one of those instinctual things that told you it was looking at you and only you. As for the twisted grin… well… that's a little harder to explain. The static where the mouth would be stretches and distorts to the point it _looks_ like a smile.

Shira didn't know what it was, just that it wanted her. She had even spent the last three weeks of summer vacation dodging that thing. The first time she saw it, it appeared in the middle of a crowd while she was out running an errand. It wasn't on top of a skyscraper or anything dramatic like that. It was just in the middle of everyone turning its "head" like it was looking for something, or some**one**. Seeing how no one was pointing, screaming, or calling the police, Shira seemed to be the only one able to see it. She stood there dumbstruck, oblivious to the mulling about of the people around her and the melting ice cream in her bag, staring at it when several people walk _through_ it.

Then it turned to face her, and she swore then and there she'd never be able to get that smile out of her head.

_Yeah, not the best combination._

But that was weeks ago, and now Shira was jumping over a puddle of something she really didn't want to the origin of and thanking those same celestial figures that she knew the alleys well enough to get to school. She had gotten a bit of a crash course over the summer and was quick enough to pick up where not to go. Her heart thudded in her ears and her throat was starting to go dry, but fear of kept her running.

She took a glance back with a dual purpose. Nikki was still running behind her (When had she let go of her friend's wrist?), now tired and very confused with her ponytail starting to come loose. Satisfied her friend was okay, she glanced behind her for the static monster. Nothing.

Shira repressed a sigh of relief as she turned her gaze forward again. When they rocketed out of the dim alley across the street from the school, she skidded to a stop and collapsed against a nearby wall from relief and exhaustion. Nikki stumbled out and sat (okay, more like fell) onto her knees, trying to catch her breath.

The two girls sat there a few minutes waiting for their heart rate to slow back down to normal. Shira looked back across the street and watched kids of various ages walk through the still open gate. Then she looked back at where the blonde sat, then stood up and offered her a hand. When Nikki took it, Shira attempted to make the mood a little lighter.

"Did I tell you I was going to try out for the track team?"

Nikki, fun-loving, joke appreciating Nikki, leveled a weak glare at her. Once she was standing straight, she crossed her arms over her chest. "Okay, what's wrong?"

Shira's heart rate picked up again. "What do you mean? Nothing's wrong."

The glare intensified. "Don't try to lie your way out of this, Atsuko Shira." She winced. Nikki hardly ever used her full name. It was never a good sign. "You've been acting weird for the last half of the summer, like you were scared of something. This morning is a prime example." She leaned forward and stared at her with her searching eyes. "What are you afraid of?"

Shira averted her eyes and shuffled uncomfortably. She always hated confrontations no matter who was doing the confronting, but her best friend? This one definitely took the cake. She considered telling her everything, right then and there, but all the reasons of why not to surfaced as well. How can you tell someone you've been running from someone only you could see? Would she believe her? Even if she did, she'd only worry more.

The brunette's mouth opened to say something—probably another lie—but she was cut off by the warning bell for school. Alarmed, she spun to look at the clock on the front of the school. They only had three minutes to get to class! Her head whipped back to Nikki, who was still staring at her intently. Her eyes narrowed and she said, "We'll finish this later, and don't think you're getting out of it." And with that, she spun on her heel and ran to school.

Shira stood there a moment, partially dazed from the events of the morning. If this the last hour was any indication, the school year was probably going to be one long, uphill struggle. She sighed resignedly, dreading lunch's arrival for the first time when Nikki would corner her somewhere and make her spill everything.

But first, school had to be dealt with. Carefully looking both ways beforehand, Shira sprinted across the street and into the building.

_Come to think of it, that day was the real turning point in my life when everything decided to stop making sense. I thought I had it bad being afraid of my friend's interrogation, but, as cliché as it sounds, things were only just beginning._

10101010101010101010101010101010

Paying no attention to the math problem on the board, Nikki risked another glance at her long time friend. Shira seemed to be thinking about the problem, since her head was bowed and her brow furrowed in concentration, casting the illusion of the 'perfect student' flawlessly. She peeked out from behind the curtain her hair made to find Nikki staring right back at her, and she quickly hid behind it as if to hide her thoughts from the blonde.

Well… almost flawlessly.

Squashing down the urge to sigh, Nikki turned forwards and scribbled down the equation onto her paper. Even then, her thoughts couldn't help but return to the mystery Shira had become.

Years ago, the brunette had been quieter than church mice and would 'happily' play alone in the corner. When her older brother dared her to, Nikki had taken it on as a personal challenge to get Shira to open up. Of course, he had advised her that it'd be best if you didn't just jump right in.

Nikki, being the impatient child she was, quickly ignored and forgot the advice. The next day, the energetic blonde had injected herself into as many of the near silent brunette's activities as humanly possible. It took all of five minutes for Nikki to notice she was now playing by herself and that Shira had mysteriously disappeared.

She did, however, pop back up later—

"Would you like to solve the equation for us, Miss Stevens?"

—And she was supposed to be working on that problem, wasn't she? Nikki reflexively stood up and promptly floundered for words. "Um… uh…"

The teacher, a brunette nearing her forties, just sighed and messaged her temples one-handed. "Just make sure you pay attention as I go over the problem," she said before turning back to the board.

Nikki sat back down with a barely audible, "Yes, Asaji-sensei." She snuck another furtive glance to Shira, who was looking at her with a mix of pity and amusement. Nikki reluctantly pulled her attention back to the board and tried to focus.

Imagine her surprise when the school bell rang.

"Don't tell me my clock is off again," the teacher muttered to herself before turning back to the class. "Your homework is on page fifty, one through thirty all. And remember to show all your work."

The class's general sounds of displeasure were cut off by the class president's order to rise and bow to the teacher. Nikki didn't try to keep the dark grin off her face; looks like she gets to find out what's wrong with her friend much sooner than she expected.


End file.
